Alamo Senior Center delivers 128 hot lunches to seniors who are shut-ins in Alamogordo and La Luz through its Meals on Wheels program.

Meals on Wheels also delivers 165 breakfasts and lunch meals. The hot meals are delivered Monday through Friday.

The program also delivers prepared frozen meals for senior shut-ins on Fridays so they can have a meal on the weekend. The frozen meal can be prepared by cooking it in a microwave oven.

Alamogordo Police Department officers recently have been doing ride-alongs with Meals on Wheels volunteers to identify any concerns with Alamogordo's more vulnerable citizens or elderly shut-ins.

Joan Wallace prepares to load meals for delivery on Thursday at the Alamo Senior Center as part of the Meals on Wheels program. (John Bear/Daily News)

Sgt. Tracy Corbett said officers are riding with volunteers to make sure home-bound seniors have a working air conditioner and are living in a safe environment.

"(The hope is) they have somebody who checks on them at least two to three times a week and the senior is not completely without contact in case of an emergency," she said. "It was our goal when we started riding with the Meals on Wheels program. Meals on Wheels volunteers seem to know everyone on their routes. These folks immediately report concerns with seniors. We also found out that the seniors do have caregivers. There were no concerns that we found."

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Corbett said officers were trying to find out if any of the senior shut-ins would benefit from a program the Alamogordo Police Department is trying to establish.

"We're looking at utilizing or implementing programs used by other police departments, which is the 'Are You OK?' program, Corbett said. "We're looking at a strategy to implement the program. This was the first step in trying to identify citizens that might benefit from that program. We're looking at implementing the program in the near future. We just wanted to identify these people and make sure they get the resources that they need."

The "Are You OK?" program is utilized by having seniors register their information with a law enforcement agency, and a 911 dispatcher calls every day to check on their welfare. The dispatcher will call at least once a day, but if the registered senior fails to pickup the telephone on the first call, the dispatcher will attempt to call again later in the day. After a second unanswered call, a police officer will be dispatched to the residence to check on them and ensure their safety.

Ronnie Ortega, director of the Alamo Senior Center, said he collaborated with APD to identify the more vulnerable people of society in the community.

"When we had the police visiting their house, they felt a little intimidated," Ortega said. "We don't want to do that to them. We want them to feel comfortable with it. We didn't find anyone who needed help right now. In speaking with the officers, our home-bound clients were real happy to see the police there. This is first time that we did this with the police department. We received two calls from family members as to why we were having the police stop by their loved one's home."

She said Tularosa has a home delivery, or Meals on Wheels, program, as do the communities in the Sacramento Mountains.

"If a home-bound senior is in need of a hot meal delivered to them, they just need to call the Alamo Senior Center," Ortega said. "We're funded through federal, state and city entities. We're also funded through the United Way of Otero County. We have volunteers and some paid staff that deliver the meals.

"In order for an elderly person to qualify for the Meals on Wheels program, they have to be mentally and physically unable to come to the center for a meal," he added. "We have a bus service that can bring them to the center for a meal. We serve a hot lunch at the senior center Monday through Friday. We're closed on the weekends."

For more information about Meals on Wheels or other services offered at the Alamo Senior Center, people can call 439-4150.